According to David Ashton and Johny Sung, “High performance work practices consist of new ways of organising work, reward performance and involving employees in the decision-making process”
HOW HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK PROCESSES BRING ABOUT A SHIFT IN THE ORGANIZATION’S CULTURE
- Workforce is Collaborative in the way they work and they possess the values required to effectively implement them. There is a shift from employees being managed as personnel to strategic human resource management (SHRM).
- Effective Performance Management system and a culture of providing informal feedback upward and downward exist- which creates a healthy and transparent working relationship in the teams.
- Higher level of employee engagement – which leads to a culture where motivation levels are higher, transparency in decision making is higher, employee involvement is higher in decision making- all of which aids implementation with minimal resistance.
- Culture of continuous learning- always evolving and learning; and being allowed to make mistakes further boosts confidence levels. What is evidently reflected is a culture where coaching is continuous and moving roles within the organization is encouraged, resulting in more exposure and increased skill levels.
- Higher level of transparency within the organization – which promotes higher productivity and creativity.
- Better working facilities and employee wellness.
It is important to remember that High Performance Working practices need to be a management initiative, and they cannot be effectively executed without the cooperation of the respective line/departmental managers.
HIGH PERFORMANCE WORKING IS LINKED TO EMPLOYEE WELL-BEING
Well-being pertains to the social, economic and positive psychological condition of the employees in an organization.
Employee well-being can be defined as taking care of the various aspects of an individual’s personal, professional and social life; and thereby providing good living and working conditions (workplace facilities). When an organization creates an environment that promotes employee well-being it fosters work-life balance.
In addition, happy employees have
- increased productivity
- better health conditions, which promotes retention and loyalty in employees.
- higher engagement and more productivity
Employee well -being is a strategic /long term approach to building a successful organization. Examples of initiatives that encourage employee well-being are: flexible or shorter working hours, working from home, recognition through verbal affirmation by top management, job rotation opportunities, and recognition programs.
Sanchari’s new employer has given her flexible and shorter working hours, and even though there are no substantial financial increments in her new job it has improved her job satisfaction level. This benefit essentially reduces unnecessary pressure enabling her to thrive in a much more productive environment.
Organizations that do not encourage employee well-being will be evident in their work culture, high absenteeism, low performance and high turnover – all leading to financial loss.
HOW CAN YOU CREATE AND SUSTAIN A HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK CULTURE
When people are properly managed they will motivate themselves to do a good job. People need to be managed in an excellent way. In a High Performing Working Organization engagement is combined with commitment and leads to the active involvement of the employee. In order to be a High Performance Working Organization (HPWO) the business must ensure that employees are given important responsibilities and convinced that they are trusted.
To be a High Performance Working Organization
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- The performance management system must be transparent with clear and smart objective setting (measurable, achievable and relevant tasks) – an environment where communication between the team member and line manager is ongoing and forthright.
- Targets for individuals must be relevant to the targets for the whole business. This ensures everyone plays their part in achieving great results.
- The talent management system must be fair where every single individual gets the needed support and opportunities for their development.
- The resourcing strategy must focus on attracting and retaining the right person for the right role and selecting people who would fit into the organization’s vision and culture.
The development of a HPWO is evolutionary and not revolutionary whereby changes and improvements happen over a period of time on a continuous basis.
Being agile in nature and providing employees the scope and flexibility in their decision-making reduces barriers between departments and promotes open communication and a participative management.